Sikorsky

Sikorsky was founded in 1925 by aircraft engineer Igor Sikorsky, a Kiev-born American immigrant. The company, named "Sikorsky Manufacturing Company", began aircraft production in Roosevelt, New York that year. In 1929 the company moved to Stratford, Connecticut and soon became a part of United Aircraft and Transport Corporation (now United Technologies Corporation). In the United States, Igor Sikorsky originally concentrated on the development of multi-engined landplanes and then amphibious aircraft. In the late 1930s, sales declined and United Aircraft merged his division with Vought Aircraft. He took this opportunity to begin work on developing a practical helicopter. After first flying the VS-300 he developed the Sikorsky R-4, the first stable, single-rotor, fully controllable helicopter to enter large full-scale production (in 1942), upon which the majority of subsequent helicopters were based. Sikorsky Aircraft remains one of the leading helicopter manufacturers, producing such well-known models as the UH-60 Black Hawk and SH-60 Seahawk. UTC acquired Schweizer Aircraft Corp. in 2004, which now operates as a subsidiary of Sikorsky. The product lines of the two firms are complementary. In 2007 Sikorsky purchased the PZL Mielec plant in Poland, which is assembling the S-70i for international customers. In February 2009, Sikorsky Global Helicopters was created as a business unit of Sikorsky Aircraft to focus on the construction and marketing of commercial helicopters. This business unit combines the main civil helicopters that were produced by Sikorsky Aircraft and the helicopter business of Schweizer Aircraft that Sikorsky had acquired in 2004. It is based at Coatesville, Pennsylvania.